Karen Brown: A Legacy of Grace, Leadership and Breaking Barriers

By Stephan Drew, Editor

Karen Brown, renowned ballerina, global performer and trailblazer, is visiting Florence and we had an extremely rare opportunity to sit down for an hour and hear about her fascinating life.

Karen Brown’s journey from a segregated Southern childhood to becoming the first African-American woman to lead a ballet company reads like a testament to talent, perseverance, and the transformative power of the arts.

Born in 1955 in Okmulgee, Oklahoma, and raised in Augusta, Georgia, Brown grew up in a family of accomplished medical professionals. As one of seven children, she and her brother Stephen made history as the first African-American students to integrate the Episcopal Day School. Her path to ballet began at age eight, inspired by watching dancers on The Ed Sullivan Show past her bedtime—a small rebellion her parents lovingly allowed.

After studying with former New York City Ballet dancer Ron Colton and earning a summer scholarship at the prestigious Joffrey Ballet school, Brown’s extraordinary talent caught the attention of Karel Shook, co-founder of Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH), at a Virginia ballet festival. She was just 17 years old.

Brown joined Dance Theatre of Harlem as an apprentice in 1973, eventually rising to principal ballerina—a position she held for 22 remarkable years. The New York Times profiled her versatility in 1984, praising her as “one of those dancers who is as compelling in plotless ballets as in dramatic works that require her to portray a character.”

Her career took her around the globe, performing an impressive repertoire that included works by ballet luminaries George Balanchine, Agnes de Mille, Geoffrey Holder, and Garth Fagan, among many others. She toured with DTH to Russia as part of the first American company to visit after the fall of the Soviet Union and participated in the company’s historic post-apartheid visit to South Africa.

In 2000, Brown achieved another groundbreaking milestone when she became Artistic Director of Oakland Ballet Company—the first African-American woman to direct a ballet company in history and the first African-American to lead a formerly all-white ballet institution. When Dance Theatre of Harlem suspended operations in 2004, she stood as the only female African-American artistic director of a ballet company worldwide.

During her tenure at Oakland Ballet, Brown worked tirelessly to diversify the company to reflect Oakland’s rich cultural demographics while expanding the repertoire to include exciting new choreographers alongside classical works. Then-mayor Jerry Brown declared her work “great news for the city.” Her leadership during challenging times included canceling the 2004 season to focus on a successful $500,000 fundraising campaign, ultimately securing the company’s future for its 40th anniversary.

Brown’s contributions extend far beyond the stage. She has taught masterclasses at institutions across Eastern and Western Europe, North and Central America, the Pacific Rim, Egypt, and South Africa. She earned a prestigious Bessie Award in 2010 for sustained achievement in performance with Paradigm, a company showcasing mature dancers.

Her leadership roles have included Executive Director of Garth Fagan Dance, Guest Artistic Director of Ballet Wichita, and currently Assistant Professor positions at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory. She has also founded the En Pointe Plus Dance Mastery Institute, combining cutting-edge motion analysis technology with accelerated learning techniques.

In 2020, celebrating Juneteenth, Brown opened the Karen Brown Coaching Studio, dedicated to her late friend and renowned ballet dancer Mel A. Tomlinson and honoring the legacy of Dance Theatre of Harlem founder Arthur Mitchell.

Perhaps what makes Brown’s achievements even more inspiring is her philosophy on artistry and life. Brown quoted the Bible (from Matthew 6:28-30, and Luke 12:27) which is from a conversation she had with her mother. “If it’s not happening with ease and joy, it’s not for me,” she says. “We are supposed to create.”

From that little girl who stayed up past bedtime to watch dancers on television to a history-making director and beloved educator, Karen Brown has spent her life proving that grace, determination, and joy can break down any barrier. Her legacy continues to inspire dancers of all backgrounds to reach for the highest heights of classical ballet.

She will be in the Florence area for a short while and can be reached at iamkarenina@gmail.com